Ready for a STEAMtastic© summer science experiment? Here’s everything you need to know to make your own fizzing rainbow ice cubes plus the science behind the bubbling magic!
WHAT YOU NEED:
- Baking Soda
- Food Coloring
- Vinegar
- Bowls
- Ice Tray (Novelty Shapes Add to the Fun)
- Squirt Bottle
- Optional Tiny Toys to Hide Inside the Ice Cubes (Use a Large Cube Tray if Adding Toys)
WHAT YOU DO:
Mix 4 tablespoons of water with a few drops of food coloring in a bowl. Do the same in separate bowls with as many different colors as you want. The more colors you use, the STEAMier the end result will be!
Add 1 cup of baking soda to a bowl. Mix in one bowl of colored water. Stir until crumbly and moldable. If the mixture feels too wet to mold, add a little more baking soda. Repeat for the next color.
Press and tightly pack the baking soda mixture into the tray. Hide tiny toys in some of the cubes for extra fun. Freeze the tray for at least 30 minutes or until it feels solid.
While you are waiting for the cubes to freeze, fill a squirt bottle with vinegar. When the cubes are frozen, carefully pop them out of the mold and start squirting away! The fizzing action will start up immediately! Add more baking soda and vinegar for continuous fizzing fun!
The magic behind the fizzing ice comes from one of our favorite chemical reactions that occurs when you mix together an acid and a base. The combination of vinegar (the acid) and baking soda (the base) results in the release of carbon dioxide (the gas that makes soda bubbly). Now that’s a COOL chemical reaction!